Machine for the production of envelopes, flat paper bags, and the like



3 Sheets-Sheet 1 M r 1954 H. HEITMANN MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ENVELOPES, FLAT PAPER BAGS, AND THE LIKE Filed May 15, 1950 March 2, 1954 n- 2,670,664

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ENVELOPES, FLAT PAPER BAGS, AND THE LIKE Filed May 13, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 M 4-, filo/vag- M r 1954 H. HEITMANN MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ENVBLOPES, FLAT PAPER BAGS,- AND THE LIKE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed May 13, 1950 Patented Mar. 2, 1954 MACHINE 'FOR THE PR'DD'UCTIO'N OF EN- VELOPES, FLAT PAPER BAGS, AND THE LIKE nits Heitma'nn, Berlin-Neukolln, Germany Application May 13, 1950, Serial No. 161,781

Claims priority, application Germany May 14, 1949 2 Claims. .1

The invention concerns folding machines for the production of envelopes, fiat paper bags and the like in which the folding and gluing of the side and bottom flaps are effected after printing, window fitting and lining etc. of the precut blanks, drawn from a pile, is completed.

In a conventional machine of this kind, the operations follow each other without changing the direction of travel of the work pieces. This involves an excessive length of the machine and makes servicing and supervision of the machine difficult during operation; it also increases the weight of the machine. The situation becomes particularly awkward when also gumming of the closing flap and drying of the gummed flap are effected on the same machine without change of travel direction of the work piece.

The present invention overcomes this defect. One object of the invention is to provide a machine operating with folding pocket and folding knives in which the travel direction of the work piece is changed at least twice by 90. Thus the whole process can be performed on a considerably smaller machine than heretofore and is further helped by the fact that as a result of the change of the position in which the articles travel, the dead space between the articles caused by folding of the side and bottom flaps can be reduced to a minimum. In the machine according to the invention the side flaps of the articles travelling in the direction of their greatest length are folded by means of folding pockets. Immediately thereupon the bottom flap is folded by a folder blade, the rollers used in this operation initiating the progress of the articles in a direction transverse of their longitudinal extension. If the machine includes gumming of the closing flaps the gummed work pieces are preferably passed in an upright position and at a right angle in relation to their previous direction of travel, through a dryer arranged parallelly to the original travel direction of the blanks. The dryer path is so arranged that the articles, by means of the conveyor, are at first conducted through the dryer in a direction opposite to that of the initial movement of the blanks and the dried articles are removed from the dryer after they have travelled through the dryer in the initial direction of travel of the original blank.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a machine of compact construction by folding the closing flap by means of a folding knife and simultaneously changing the travel direction of the work pieces once more by 90, whereupon the finished articles are removed from the machine.

There are, in fact, machines for producing envelopes and paper bags which operate with changes of the direction in which the articles are advanced, but the change takes place only when the folded and lued articles are transferred to the drying device. This method does not affect the space requirements of the preceding and following operations so that a saving of space as intended by the invention is neither contemplated nor attained.

'In spite of the small space required by .a machine according to the invention, it can be so constructed that all operations are effected at substantially the same elevation and on the same plane. The supervision and maintenance of the various machine parts are thereby much facilitated. The manufacture is also found to be very much simpler and it is possible to combine individual groups of devices and mount them in series independently of each other.

In order that the machine may optionally operate with or without gumming the loose closing flap, it is a further object of the invention to provide a machine in which the guiding track following the bottom flap folding is designed as a folding pocket with a stop or abutment which may, if desired, be removed or rendered inactive and which, if not removed, afford folding of the closin flap and the removal of articles without gumming the closing flap.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a machine for the manufacture of envelopes, constructed according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation corresponding to Fig. l and Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

From the stack or pile l which contain preout blanks of envelopes or flat bags of the desired type the undermost blank is in the usual way drawn into the machine by a roller 2 in such a way (Fig. 3) that-in a plan view-the side-flaps are pointing forwards and to the rear, thebottom flap to the left and the loose closing flap to the right. While traveling along the dotted route one surface of the blank is printed on by the printing device 3 and the other surface by the printing device 4. Whilst the blank is being carried in the direction of arrow at (Fig. 3), the segment 5 deposits gum on the still open bottom flap. From here the article enters a folding pocket 6 up to an abutment or stop I whereupon the buckled side flap, which trails,

is gripped by rollers 8, 9 which fold the side flap upon the blank and which move the blank to the folder pocket It in which the produce fold of the side flap strikes against stop H. Rollers 9, I2 now produce the fold of the side flap pointing in a forward direction. The blanks are further advanced in the original direction of travel as far as stop I3. Thereupon the folding knife l4 and the rollers I5, It fold the bottom flap downwards. At the same time the direction in which the articles travel is changed by 90 (arrow b, Fig. 3) so that they travel no longer in the direction of their longitudinal axis, but in the direction transverse thereto with the bottom flap at the front and the closing flap at the rear. After the gumming of the closing flap has been performed by device I! the individual work pieces are carried to stop 18 where they are gripped by the members IQ of the drying conveyor 20 and carried through the hot air duct 20'. The upper run of the drying conveyor (arrow moves parallel to and in opposite direction to that of arrow a, the lower run (arrow d) moving in the same direction as arrow (1. The gummed open closing flap projects side ways from the members 19 of the conveyor 28 so as to be enclosed by the hot air duct 20. At the end of the drying circuit the articles are taken from the conveyor and transported by rollers 2!, 22 without changing the travel direction, as indicated by arrow 6. When work pieces have reached stop 23, the closing flap is folded with the aid of the folding knives 24 and rollers 25, 26, adjustment being aided by segment i which rotates in the opposite direction to that of the adjoining roller 25. During this last folding operation the direction of travel of the work pieces is again changed by 90 (arrow 1). The now finished articles enter the delivery device where they are collected.

If envelopes without ungummed closing flap are to be produced on the machine, the guiding track following the rollers l5, l6 of the bottom flap folder is constructed as a folder pocket containing the removable stop 29. The latter causes buckling of the closing flap which is folded by rollers 38, Si, the latter pushing the finished articles down to the delivering device 32 Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:

1. A machine for producing flat bags from precut blanks having two side flaps, a bottom flap, and a closing flap, the latter two flaps extending at a right angle with respect to the side flaps, said blanks being arranged in a pile with one side flap facing the machine and the other side flap being distal with respect to the machine, comprising, in combination, a transport roller adapted to pull the blanks, one after the other from the bottom of the pile with one side flap forward and the other side fiap trailing and the bottom and closing flaps positioned laterally, a

pair of printing rollers consecutively receiving the blanks from said transport roller and adapted to print on one surface of the blanks, a pair of second printing rollers consecutively receiving the blanks from said first printing rollers and adapted to print on the other surface of the blanks, a gumming roller consecutively receiving pieces .4 the blanks coming from said second printing rollers and adapted to gum the marginal portions of the bottom flap, a pair of rollers consecutively receiving the blanks. from said gumming roller, a first pocket consecutively receiving the blanks from said last mentioned rollers and having an abutment adapted to abut the forward side flap and to stop the blank causing buckling of the trailing side flap, a first roller forming a bight with one roller of said pair of rollers and adapted to grip the buckled side flap and fold the trailing side flap in said bight, a second pocket consecutively receiving the blanks from said bight and having an abutment adapted to abut the folded side flap and to stop the blank causing buckling of the other side flap, a second roller forming a bight with said first roller and adapted to grip the last buckled side flap and fold it in said bight, first stop means abutting the last folded side flap of the blanks, transport means engaging the stepped blanks and adapted to convey the blanks, with the closing flap trailing, in a direction at a right angle to the direction at which the blanks arrive at said stop means, folding means disposed adjacent to and adapted to cooperate with said transport means for folding the bottom flap upon the folded side flaps, a third pocket receiving the work pieces from said trans port means and having an abutment adapted to abut the folded bottom flap causing buckling of the closing flap, a pairof rollers forming a bight receiving the buckled closing flap and folding the flap upon the blank, said last mentioned abutment being removable from said pocket affording advancement of the blank through said third pocket, gumming means consecutively receiving the work pieces from said third pocket, if said last mentioned abutment is removed, and adapted to gum the closing flaps, second stop means abutting the work pieces as they come from said last mentioned gumming means, an endless drying conveyor travelling in a plane at a right angle to the direction of travel of the work pieces from said first to said second stop means and adapted to receive the work pieces at said second stop means, said conveyor forming a loop having a lower run, unloading means adjacent to said lower run and adapted to receive the work therefrom after they have travelled through the lower run, and closing flap folding means consecutively receiving the work pieces from said unloading means and adapted to fold the closing flaps upon the work pieces.

2. A machine as defined in claim 1, said closing flap folding means including a stop and transport means adapted to convey the work pieces at a right angle to the direction in which they arrive from said conveyor. 7

HANS HEITMANN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,121,125 Novick Dec. 15, 1914 1,580,441 Parks Apr. 13, 1926 2,307,907 Becker Jan. 12, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 422,237 Great Britain Jan. 8, 1935 

